The World Bank does a comparative annual survey of the business environment of different countries. Usually the comparative rankings are the parts of the reports that feature in the headlines. The rankings are made on the basis of 11 ratings;

Starting a business

Dealing with conustruction permits

Getting electricity

Registering property

Getting credit

Protecting minority investors

Paying taxes

Trading across borders

Enforcing contracts

Resolving insolvency

Labor market regulation

Deep within the reports, real actionable information can be found. Each individual 11 ratings for each country has to be justified and this involves spelling out information such as the appropriate legislative acts, relevant operational procedures, the time it takes and the amount of money involved.

For example in Doing Business 2017 – Equal Opportunity for All – Mongolia, pages 49 to 51 details the 5-step , 12-day procedure to register a property in Mongolia along with fees for different property prices. This is followed by a general FAQ on pages 52-55, where the answers also inform the contribution to the World Bank’s ratings. If the rating is a 0, then it’s likely to be an issue in business planning.

There are 10 other areas like this with the details spelled out, in the report, and the research draws from a range of resources. This is a great tool for reducing research time, double-checking information from local partners and ensuring proper planning. It will be very useful for any investor and entrepreneur.